Fishermen often have more than one motor on their fishing boats. A large motor may be used for moving the boat between distant points on a body of water such as a lake. A much smaller, trolling motor is used to troll in the immediate vicinity of a chosen fishing spot. During times when the larger motor is in operation, the fisherman must retract the trolling motor from the water. On arriving at a chosen location, the fisherman must then reset the trolling motor to its useful position. Often, these operations must be carried out repeatedly during a day's fishing.
Various devices have been introduced to make the task of retracting and resetting the trolling motor less onerous. The available devices allow the fisherman to retract the trolling motor from the water and stow the motor in a horizontal position on the boat.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,724,790 to Harris et al. discloses a motor mounting assembly to attach a trolling motor to a boat. The assembly allows the motor to be pivoted up and out of the water to a stowed horizontal position on the deck.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,861,628 to Krieger discloses a bracket assembly which allows a fisherman to mount a trolling motor so that it can be automatically positioned vertically for operation in the water, and retracted when not in use. In the retracted position, the trolling motor is on top of the boat deck in a horizontal position.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,954,080 to Weaver discloses a bracket and linkage assembly for mounting a trolling motor to the bow or deck of a boat. Once attached, the motor may be swung between its vertical operating position and its stowed position on the deck.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,634,390 and 4,966,566 to Baird disclose spring-biased mechanisms which are pivotally attachable to a trolling motor mount. These mechanisms are used to counterbalance the weight of a trolling motor to aid the fisherman in raising the trolling motor out of the water to stow it in a horizontal position on the deck.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,410,161 to Booty discloses a mounting apparatus for trolling motors which utilizes a mounting bracket and swivel arms to allow the motor to be rotated through 90.degree. from an operation (vertical) position to a stowed (horizontal) position.
The above-listed devices allow the fisherman to stow a trolling motor by bringing the motor to a horizontal position on the boat. However, none of these devices allow the fisherman to quickly raise the trolling motor from the water, hold it in an approximately vertical position, and then quickly lower it into an operational position. Additionally, the devices listed above require substantial hardware to accomplish their goal of allowing the trolling motor to be pivoted up out of the water and stowed in a locked position on the boat deck.
It is an object of the present invention to allow a fisherman to quickly raise a trolling motor from the water so that he can then motor to another location without having to stow the trolling motor in a horizontal position.
It is another object of the present invention to allow a fisherman to quickly and easily lower a trolling motor into the water without having to release the motor from a stowed horizontal position.
It is a further object of the present invention to allow a trolling motor to be secured in a raised vertical position so that it is unnecessary to move the motor to a horizontal stowed position.